My friend Gay left these for me to read and return. I couldn't put them down, and recommend heartily. I am currently re-reading Peter May "Lockdown" which I can also recommend if you like suspenseful books.
Finally, another gift from me, to me, which I needed as I had thrown the old linen jelly bag away as it had gone fousty, and I no longer have a suitable beam to hang my jelly bag from. Just one long rafter-type beam in the kitchen and not situated over any work surface I can put a bowl for the juice. This will work a treat. I have been busy picking lots of blackberries to turn into jam or jelly, so come September, will get cracking.
I am feeling rather down in the dumps at the moment, mainly because I scarcely slept at all last night, worrying about Keith, and also Theo who has decided that food isn't for him and has lost a lot of weight. I managed to get him to eat better today by chopping up some chicken very finely, but he is booked in to the vet's tomorrow to get his mouth checked (that won't go down well with him) but I am 95% certain he is going to need his teefs cleaned and perhaps one or more removed. Another £400 bill I can ill afford.
We saw the PD nurse again today and Keith's medication has been tweeked again, so let's hope that works. The Physio said something which really upset me this week (I'm sure he didn't mean to - it was a realistic statement) but I think there are sometimes when things are best just thought rather than voiced.
Billy Blue-Eyes - I took a photo of what little remains of Nantygwyllt House, the very grand one which Shelley wanted to buy after staying at his uncle's house nearby, Cwm Elan. Will put an Elan Valley post up at the weekend.
You have a lot on your plate these days, especially with all the worries about Keith's health. Just make sure you are taking care of yourself in the midst of everything. All too easy to try to keep pushing through to do everything and then find yourself utterly exhausted and no good to anyone, least of all yourself. You're too important!! x
ReplyDeleteThank you Mary. I'm trying to. Last weekend helped, when we got out together. I'm trying not to get too stuck into endless games of Solitaire whichdistract me.
DeleteI hope your jelly bag gizmo works better and is easier to assemble than it's predecessor model! Mine now resides in the donations box.
ReplyDeleteSorry the physio upset you, and I agree some things best left unsaid. My friend advised me that if I don't want to hear the answer then don't ask the question, although it sounds as if the physio just volunteered information, unsought.
I have to say, it was a bit fiddly! Clearly designed as well as made in China! I think the Physio was trying to get across how important it was to try and straighten the neck etc but what he said ended up being totally distressing.
DeleteSorry that the comment by the physio upset you - as an ex nhs worker I know how easy it can be to open mouth before engaging brain -
ReplyDeleteLove the selection of books, normally I read a lot but puppy duties have taken over a bit here at the moment!
Hope the vet appointment goes ok
Alison in Wales x
He clearly didn't think about the impact, but it has been haunting me ever since and Keith has been affected too.
DeleteI can do without worrying about Theo on top of all this. I'll be glad when he's sorted, even though I shall be much poorer!
Those books all look so very interesting. I wonder if I can find a few of them here in Canada. I hope the tweak in Keith's meds work.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
I hope that you can find some of those books. The Devon/Dartmoor ones involved antiques dealing so right up my street!
DeleteHave my fingers x'd about the latest tweaking of Keith's meds.
You've got a lovely lot of books to get into there, and I hopped over to the library website and ordered the Dead in Devon which is the first in a series. Looked on Fantastic Fiction and see the author once worked for Devon Schools Library Service - so she must be OK!
ReplyDeleteThe jelly bag does work 100% better than their previous one which needed 4 hands to put it together!
I do hope altering the medications works quickly
And I know how hurtful an unguarded comment can be because after Col died the Specialist cancer nurse said something about that's why people should be brought into hospital sooner - which was quite an odd thing to say and wrong anyway according to the consultant but stuck with me still.
Really interesting books there BB. The Castles of the Marches particularly appeals to me. Last September we did the walk between White, Grosmont and can’t remember the name of the third castle - it was lovely. I stupidly passed on Jen Jones’ quilt book when I saw it secondhand in a NT bookshop a few years’ ago. I am using spoonfuls of homemade jelly in so many recipes nowadays. For example I slow roasted some rock hard foraged plums the other day and instead of using sugar I used a dessert spoon of red gooseberry jelly with lemon zest and an inch of cinnamon stick - delicious with a dollop of marscapone. You have a lot on your plate at the moment - things will get better. Take care BB and enjoy your reading and jelly making. Sarah x
ReplyDeleteSkenfrith. Once had a very good 22/1 winner on a horse called that, a grey. You didn't miss a great deal as it's mainly just the tower left (with an apple tree by it). Good food at the Bell at Skenfrith though. If you see Jen Jones' quilt book about again, buy it, as it really is good. I am planning to go to the quilt display in Lampeter in the next couple of weeks (once Builth Fair's out of the way). Oooh, those plums must have been tasty. I have red gooseberry jam that Tam made, but no jelly. It's year one of soft fruit bushes here, so not much action especially with the drought. I am looking forward to jam and jelly making again.
DeleteThanks Just interested how wit looked now. I tend to read most of my books on Kindle though I have a few hardcover books on Churches, that one secret churches looks very interesting, better check it out
ReplyDeleteOh gosh, we have books all over the house - testament to our many MANY trips to Hay-on-Wye down the years, and the lure of Abebooks and Amazon!
DeleteThat is a good quilt book!
ReplyDeleteI have just gone over to using a cotton pillowcase instead of my muslin square a a jeely bag as it is called here! The combination of that and a fairly tall kitchen stool is working!!
Hope the meds tweak works xx
I've noticed a quilting group takes place at Garth. I'd go like a flash but Covid is still about - the solicitors' in town is shut due to it and Lord know which whops their employees have been in down the town. No kitchen stools here and the chairs we are currently using are Smokers' Bows. The meds tweak has a while to go before it kicks in and Keith sadly had a non meds work day today.
DeleteI never upgraded to a proper jelly bag, would juggle with tying muslin to an upturned stool, yours looks so much easier. Theo will go to the vet and you will probably have to pay for some expensive dental work. But Keith is at the mercy of doctors and consultants and all I can hope for you both that the medicines will eventually work. Don't stress too much.
ReplyDeleteI used to make a lot of jams and jellies to sell at car boot sales, as well as giving as gifts. We've never been jam eaters, though I have to say home made jam is so incredibly better than the jars of sugar passed off as jam in the shops. Mine taste of FRUIT.
DeleteStress - ah, not so easy to keep under the rock of life. Just hoping we can get the right balance of meds soon - they vary depending on what variant of PD you have - his doesn't appear to be the straightforward one, sadly.
I hope the meds kick in soon and work well for Keith. It is understandable that you are so stressed. Health professionals can sometimes have no sense and make thoughtless statements. I dealt with this some while caring for my sister. It is so tiring. Friends would tell me to take care of myself, and I'll say the same to you, though I understand how extremely difficult it is to do that when you carry the weight of worry. I hope the vet takes care of Theo. Sorry that will be expensive. Vet care here is expensive as well. Take care of yourself.
ReplyDeleteMe too. It's so difficult getting it all balanced I guess - every patient is different. The PD nurse was very reassuring this week though.
DeleteThe vet's bill not as bad as expected, so let's hope he doesn't need to go back for a while.
I always love nbook lists, thanks so much! I have read Lockdown, it fascinated me how prophetic it was, tho a few months later I admit the plt has gone out of my head. Wil look it up again on my Kindle. The Dead In.. series looks interesting too. As does the quilt book, tho I imagine it is not affordable here.
ReplyDeleteMo's vet bill last week was ghastly, huge [$350 just for lab work, then more for annual things and ear culture/ cleaning/ meds. ]---but I am so relieved he doesn't need dental intervention at the present.
It's been worth re-reading though my credulity has been a bit stretched by a half-dead Pinkie managing so much at the end of the book!
DeleteSorry you had such a huge vet's bill. You will have to clean his teefs daily to keep those dental bills at bay.
Sorry for the typos in my original comment! I use a dental spray and I just got a supplement to add to food, for teeth care. One does not brush a pug's teeth, they hate their faces being touched.
DeleteOh dear - everything seems so much bleaker (more bleak?) in the middle of the night, doesn't it, and the black overpowers the tiny ray of hope. I hope and pray the doctors find a satisfactory balance of meds soon, and Keith feels better, which will relieve your mind. As for the cat - they do become expensive as they age, don't they! Thinking of you both. XX
ReplyDeleteMiddle of the night worries seem SO much worse than during the daytime. Theo eating better and has ear problems rather than teefs (cheaper to treat!)
DeleteHoping this latest add-on will help.